The Israeli tour guide was...

The Israeli tour guide was amazed that people would expend money and effort to travel
to Israel only to flaunt their unbelief. A man in the group snorted derision when, at the
traditional spot of Jesus' Sermon the Mount, Jesus' prayer was read, "Our Father...." He
spoke loudly enough for most of the 45 pilgrims to hear, "God, a father? I could tell you
the brute my father was."

The next morning, in Jerusalem, the group waited in the hotel lobby as the guide said
good-bye to his wife and fussing children. Then, as he explained the day's schedule to the

Sandra Herrmann

The word epiphany is from the Greek and refers to the experience of a sudden and amazing realization. Usually it’s applied to a scientific or philosophical/religious breakthrough, but it can apply in any situation in which a brilliant insight gives a person a different perspective on life or a problem s/he has been considering. For example, Archimedes’ famous shriek of “Eureka!” came as he was in the baths, contemplating yet again the difficulty of determining if a given mass would float.

Ron LoveMark EllingsenBob OveBonnie BatesBill ThomasFrank Ramirez

Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10Imagine a worship service, a sharing of scripture and interpretation, that went on from dawn until midday. How would you respond? In many of our mainline churches a worship service that last more than an hour risks negative comments to the pastor. “Worship was too long.” “I have other things to do today.” “Can’t you try to keep worship to an hour?”

Janice B. Scott

Some time ago there was a series of programmes on BBC 2 on the recent history of the Catholic Church. The series was called "Absolute Truth", and one programme looked at Catholicism in the developing parts of the world. It studied the work of liberation theologians in Latin America, particularly Leonardo Boff and Oscar Romero.